Planning commissioners hear livability presentations on zoning, 'missing middle' housing and Phase 1 code changes

The Santa Fe Planning Commission on Oct. 2 heard summaries of two “livability series” talks that commissioners said helped shape thinking on the city’s land development code rewrite, and staff described Phase 1 provisions including an affordability incentive that would allow up to four housing units on a 1‑acre lot if at least one unit is affordable.

Commissioners said the presentations — originally given to a small cohort that included commissioners and county representatives — emphasized how zoning shapes transportation, housing types, climate resilience and neighborhood form. The commission’s recap named speaker Sarah Bronin, who reviewed Hartford’s reforms, and architect Daniel Paralek, who discussed “missing middle” housing types (duplexes, triplexes, four‑plexes, bungalow courts and courtyard apartments) and visual approaches to community engagement.

Why it matters: Planning commissioners will vote on recommendations to the governing body as part of a multi‑phase code rewrite. Changes to the land development code determine which housing types can be built by right, whether applications require public hearings, and which incentive programs apply — decisions that affect…